Desolation
by StumbleDore
Summary: Two Spartans are left stranded on a dead planet and their only way of getting back to Earth lies on the other side. Uneasy alliances form and even more unstable friendships are tested as an unlikely group of survivors just want to get back home, referably in one piece. Rated T for blood, violence, swearing and some gore. I'm bad at summaries, I know.


**Location Classified, Terra V**

**[INFORMATION LOST] Hours**

**Date Classified**

We leapt through the trees like Deer on an open field. The two of us jumped from branch to branch with ease, all the while having a hail of plasma fire being hurled at us from the ground forces down below. It was supposed to a simple recon mission; arrive at the co-ordinates in a cloaked Pelican, survey the area for Covenant and return to base for report. Simple, right?

Nope.

The only problem was that we had a new Rookie on our team, Charlie-407, and replaced our previous third, who was in the medical bays for injury. Charlie was a good Spartan, as all Spartans were, but he made a mistake even a normal marine wouldn't do; open fire with an unsilenced weapon.

XXXXX

A few minutes earlier...

XXXXX

Me and Charlie reached the vantage point before our sniper, Charlotte-305 did so she could scope out if the coast was clear or not, which it was. Going into a crawl, me and Charlie slowly looked over the cliff that we were on to look at the Covenant deployment below. What we saw astounded us; a full blown base was pretty much underneath us. There were deep methane pits for the grunts, shooting ranges, lookout posts, a massive armoury, which we assumed held more than just guns and down the back and sides were small tent-like structures for the Elites and other Creatures of the Covenant.

"Alpha Actual; be advised I'm seeing a patrol coming up from your left, 500 metres. Two Ghosts, Elite drivers with Skirmisher escorts. Recommend getting back into the forest." Charlotte announced over the COMs.

"Copy that, moving back into position." I picked myself back up and quickly moved back into the forest we first emerged from. I looked over my shoulder and saw that Charlie was still prone on the cliff.

"Charlie, get back." I told him over the COMs.

Nothing.

"Charlie! Get your ass back here!"

"Alpha Actual; the patrol's 300 metres away. What's Charlie doing?"

"I don't know, but whatever it is, it's against orders." I tried everything I could to get his attention; flash my acknowledgement light on and off rapidly, giving fake Intel on his HUD in mass amounts, I started yelling at him. The patrol was only a hundred metres from us and could probably couldn't see us but I took the risk.

"Charlie!" I yelled without the external muting, meaning everyone within earshot could hear it. He finally looked around to see me and unfortunately the patrol, which was right on top of us. He leapt onto the path in front of the patrol, did a combat roll and fired the assault rifle in his hands, which wasn't silenced.

Oh shit I thought as I leaned forward, grabbed him and yanked him into the forest.

"Run!" I told him and I jumped, grabbed a tree branch and vaulted off that onto another branch. Behind me I heard Charlie do the same but not with nearly as much finesse as myself. The ghosts had turned around and began firing at us, with superheated bolts of plasma hitting the trees and melting them to almost their core...

XXXXX

Right now...

XXXXX

I slammed another clip into the handle of my magnum, before aiming back down and firing at the skirmishers around the Ghosts, as the elite driver's energy shields were too strong for these weak-ass M6C pistols. I leaped onto anther branch before firing another two rounds, each one hitting their deadly mark and leaving all of the ghost's support dead.

"Alpha Actual, I've got eyes on a Phantom approaching your position, recommend veering away from the path and return to base."

"Acknowledged. Heading toward your position; get ready for a fight." I looked to my left and grabbed onto another branch before vaulting myself three trees ahead. I looked over my shoulder and saw that Charlie was slowly catching up.

"Charlie, keep up!" I yelled at him.

"With all due respect, sir; us Spartan IVs aren't built for speed as you Vs." He responded as he got to where I was before stopping. He was right; Spartan IVs were made for heavy combat situations, that meant facing a Covenant battalion and winning. Very unlike Spartan Vs; which were made with speed, stealth and mobility in mind. We had less armour and shielding then our predecessors, but we made up for it in speed; with our bio-enhanced legs having the potential to go up to 45 kilometres an hour. I noticed that the Ghosts that were following us were nowhere to be seen. Checking my motion tracker, I also noted that it read all-clear.

"Odd."

"What?"

"The ghosts that were here before... They've disappeared."

"Maybe they just went back."

"Highly unlikely, Elites aren't known for 'going back'. Something's up." I made a COMlink with Charlotte.

"Charlotte, do you see anything near us? The Ghosts chasing us aren't anywhere."

There was nothing but static for a few seconds, before she spoke up.

"Alpha Actual, Banshees 500 metres North-west of you. Keep down, they're searching for you."

"Acknowledged, going into cover now." I motioned Charlie to follow me as I went into a crouch and hid underneath a bit of shrubbery, before stopping for a second. I heard the clanking and grinding of Charlie's heavy assault-class MJOLNIR armour clambering behind me, desperately trying to keep quiet.

"Stop." The clanking ceased, "now, do you have any camouflage or anything that can hide that noise?"

"Sorry man, I got nothing. We're built differently, remember?"

"Yes I know... Just try and be as quiet as you can, okay? If that means standing up, so be it but I really don't want to be target practice, okay?" He nodded and stood up from the bushes, going into the shadows of the trees for protection.

"Alpha Actual, three Jackals, five Grunts with Fuel Rods fifty metres to your left. Keep quiet, those things can make quite a racket." Charlotte notified.

"Acknowledged. Staying in cover." I motioned the order to Charlie, in which he promptly confirmed with a thumbs-up. We moved silently, making only whispers in the plant life. I got within five metres of a small path originally used to bring supplies from a titanium mine to a city just outside the forest, both locations that had been consumed and destroyed by the Covenant Horde. The Grunts were mere inches from me as they passed, Fuel Rod Cannons slung over their tiny shoulders, already dangerous as-is, the last thing we needed was a massive explosion, attracting the whole of the Covenant Base to us. I let them pass me, watching them shifting their weight from one foot to the other as they marched forward, Methane packs swinging on their backs. The Jackals were in a tight triangle formation in the middle of the Grunts, shields raised and pistols charged, ready to fire. The one leading the formation was the assumed superior, with a red shield instead of the regular blue, a much stockier build and a Plasma Rifle, which was odd considering only Elites and very few other races of the Covenant could wield such a weapon.

"Watch out Charlie, red Jackal's got a Plasma Rifle." I whispered to the Spartan beside me. He waited a few moments before he responded.

"Got it. Climb the trees, jump the Jackals. I'll get the Grunts in the confusion."

"... Good plan, putting it into affect now." I whispered as I leapt up to the branch a metre above me, lifting my weight up and over said branch. I crouched, changing my centre of gravity to achieve a better jump speed. I looked down at Charlie, which in turn he gave me a thumbs up; signifying that he was ready. I didn't want to take any chances, so I unhooked the secondary pistol from my holster (which was silenced) and tossed it down to him, hoping he wouldn't use his rifle. I looked back and saw that the patrol squad had stopped; the Jackals sniffing the air and the Grunts chattering uneasily, They knew we were here, they just didn't know where.

I jumped.

The Jackals barely had any time to register the situation before I slammed their heads into the ground below them, the front of their skulls crushing under the pressure. The Grunts turned, threw the Fuel Rods into the air and ran for their lives, before five silenced shots rung out and ended them with brutal efficiency. I looked up to the Jackal leader, which I could see now in more detail. He was a lot bigger than other Jackals, with broader shoulders, larger waist and heavier arms than his counterparts. The frill on the top of his head was flared to its fullest extent, almost reaching ten centimetres in length. His shield had been withdrawn and his Plasma Rifle aimed right at my helmet. It snarled, spittle dripping from its beak.

"You killed my brethren. You have no chance of living now!"

"Actually, you big turkey, I have a very high chance of surviving this."

"I fire, the whole base comes, you die." I had to give it to him, this Jackal did have a good grasp on the English language.

"You wouldn't get a chance to fire." I put a hand to my helmet, pretending to push a button. "Charlotte, you got eyes on me?"

Static filled the COMs for a few moments before she responded, "Yes, target the Jackal?"

"Affirmative, be ready to fire on my count." The supposed superior Jackal started looking around nervously, hoping to see the hidden sniper. It started hopping about, in an attempt to throw off Charlotte's aim.

"Ready to fire, sir. Give the command." The sniper in question poised.

"On my mark. Three..."

The Jackal suddenly went wide-eyed, "No, wait! Don't!"

"Two..."

"Please don't, LOOK!"

"On-" A massive explosion cracked through the air behind me, the shockwave thrusting me to the ground and breaking my shielding.

"Shit!" I yelled over the noise. Looking over my shoulder, I saw that a beam of plasma was crashing down from a Covenant carrier above onto the ground below.

"Shit, shit shit! Charlotte, give me your status, now!" I screamed into the COMs, only to have static fill the air. Cursing more, I picked myself up and snapped my head toward Charlie, who was already up and moving toward me.

"Lewis! You alright?" He asked, pulling me up beside him.

"Yeah, I'm alright. What's your status?"

"I think my gel layers broken, shields down. Nothing a basic field repair couldn't fix."

"We gotta move fast. They're gonna glass this place and us with it if we don't move now."

"But to where? There's no place around here not Covenant-controlled."

I thought for a split second before answering. "The titanium mine, down this path. If we move now we might just make it before the beam does."

"But that was destroyed a few days ago. How could we get in?"

"You got grenades, right?"

"... Oooohh, I gotcha." He let go of me and we started sprinting down the path, me in the obvious lead. The mine was nearer than I first thought, only a kilometre from our original position. Risking a glance over my shoulder, I saw that the plasma beam was getting nearer and nearer by the second, incinerating trees and ending all life that it touched. Some embers from the burning trees, plus the winds generated by the destructive pillar of energy meant a massive fire had started and was raging out in all directions, adding to the casualties for anything unlucky enough to get trapped in there. Now sprinting, I reached the mine entrance a good few seconds before Charlie did, but another, smaller figure was trailing behind him, with a red circular outline on its right hand...

"Charlie! The Jackal's right behind you! Toss me the 'nades and you take care of him!" I ordered over the sound of raging fire and the pulse of plasma. Charlie took two fragmentation grenades from his chest belt and tossed them into the air, allowing me to snatch them out of flight, pull both pins, and lodge them into the rock of the caved-in mine all in one smooth movement. Leaping out of the way, the devices detonated, sending rocks and debris flying in all directions.

"Charlie! Hole's open lets go!" I made a mad dash to the three metre wide hole in the rock, just wide enough for me to dive through, make a combat roll and land on my feet. Looking back into the chaos, I saw that Charlie was running toward the hole, but the Jackal was still alive, and still behind him. He bounded once before leaping into the hole, falling face-first into the ground.

"Ow," was all he could say before he jumped back up.

"Why the hell is the Jackal still alive?" I asked rather forcefully.

"I didn't have time to finish him off, okay?" He responded, smacking the side of his helmet. As if on cue, the Jackal in question screamed in its native tongue as it soared through the gap, using its shield to block itself from hitting the ground.

"Don't you move a muscle." I stated, pulling the assault rifle (which was thankfully silenced, unlike Charlie's) from my back and aiming it square into the reptilian's face.

"Block the hole! Fire get through, we all die!" It blurted, making me realise that it was right; the hole I'd made didn't have anything to block it with, allowing the fire easy access into the small ten-by-five metre space and cooking us alive. Thinking quickly, I grabbed the Jackal by its arm and shoved it to the gap.

"Use your shield to keep the gap closed."

It spat onto my armour, "why would I do that?"

"Because if you don't, we'll either burn alive together or I'll cut your arm off and do it myself. You hear that?" It thought for a second before uttering its answer.

"...fine..." It said before grumbling off in native tongue. It's shield hand sparked and a circle of red energy blocked the entrance. It stood in a defensive position, bending its front knee and keeping the back leg straight, forcing a better balance.

Now all we had to do...

Was wait.

I hated waiting.


End file.
